The present invention relates generally to methods and apparatus for data input and, more specifically, to proximity sensor or touch sensor usability enhancement on electronics, such as clamshell notebooks.
Proximity sensors (also commonly called touch pads or touch sensor devices) are widely used in a variety of electronic systems. Many electronic devices have a touch screen, which may be used in connection with a display to provide input information to the devices, for example, to perform selections among objects shown on the display. Such devices may comprise a keypad or keyboard for inputting information by the keys of the keyboard.
There exists a problem with usability in devices equipped both with a touch screen and a keyboard. When users try to touch the touch screen to perform some touch based action with fingers, they may simultaneously or accidentally press some key or keys in the keyboard. This may cause unintentional data input problem. The problem may be solved by keyboard lock operation. The keyboard may be activated and deactivated by manually pressing a certain key or a key combination of the keyboard. However, this method may be cumbersome because every time users want to use the keyboard, they have to manually activate and subsequently deactivate the key lock, to avoid erroneous key presses.
Therefore, it can be seen that there is a need for an automatic key lock.